States they have received
some suggestions from the American Feed Industry Association for some
amendments. They are in agreement with the suggestions and propose that there
may be amendments to the bill. Submits written testimony.(EXHIBIT
B).

121

Dennis Hayes

Executive Secretary,
Oregon Feed and Grain Association.Supports the changes in the bill.

129

Chair Messerle

Closes Public Hearing on
SB 310.

SECONDARY LANDS – INFORMATIONAL MEETING

136

Ron Eber

Farm and Forest Land
Specialist, Department of Land Conservation and Development. Updates the
committee on the rural lands mapping project. Department was directed to put
together a computer base to show rural lands using GIS mapping. Has worked
with UO to get existing database going. States that each county will be on a
CD disk at the end of the project, which will be by the end of the biennium.
Submits written testimony. (EXHIBIT C).

196

Chair Messerle

Asked if the information
is based on the NRCS maps. Also asks if this is the same information that was
gathered 15 years ago by staff going around the countryside doing soil
samples?

200

Eber

Agrees, and explains site
specific situation inaccuracies.

234

Chair Messerle

States that there are
other bills coming before us, and asks who is holding this information and
the reason it’s being held where it is.

240

Eber

States that the
information being assembled, is currently being held at UO where the work is
being done under contract.

254

Chair Messerle

There are other areas we
are concerned about, like slide areas, flood plains, etc., asks if they are
trying to get it under one central location so a person can click onto one
page to get all information.

263

Eber

Responds that they are
attempting to get the major sets of information into a format that is
compatible on the same scale.

294

Sen. Shields

Asks what is the time line
for the information to be in a compatible digital format.

300

Eber

Unsure, several years away
from completion.

311

Sen.Atkinson

How old is this Jackson
County data?

316

Eber

Responds that the
information on that particular map is from last month.

330

Sen.Atkinson

Is this map trying to
demonstrate that the classifications might or might not be up to date?

337

Eber

Zoning classifications are
fairly up to date in the past few months.Submits written testimony. (EXHIBITS
D & E).

378

Dave Hunnicutt

Representing Oregonians in
Action. Agrees with previous testimony. Supports the continuation of the
mapping process. He hopes a work group can be organized to discuss bringing
today’s legislation more in line with what was intended in legislation in
1973. Submits written testimony. (EXHIBIT F).

510

Sen. Burdick

Asks what are the goals in
trying to open programs on these secondary lands and asks for clarification.

TAPE 19,A

039

Hunnicutt

Gives clarification and
gives examples.

065

Sen.Burdick

Inquires if his vision is
to allow hillsides to be split into five acres parcels.

067

Hunnicutt

Responds that to the
extent that those areas are secondary and not prime farmlands and provide a
level of services. Would support the creation of residential rural zones.

073

Sen.Burdick

Asks about the need for
home dwelling sites outside the urban areas. Asks if he is aware of the
hundreds of thousands of acres, currently zoned rural-residential around the
state that are not inside urban growth boundaries in exception areas?

078

Hunnicutt

Gives explanation of rural
development acreage within the state.

090

Sen.Burdick

Notes that he wants to
have these nonproductive hillsides developed at some level of density; yet
many of these occur within bigger farm/forest zones where farming and
forestry practices take place. What accommodation should these areas have to
make to the orderly conduct of forest and farming business, which are often
times in conflict with residential usage?

103

Hunnicutt

States that the department
supports the right to farm and forest practices laws, and gives some detailed
answers.

117

Sen.Burdick

Asks if he doesn’t
consider that the density itself could pose any conflict, inherently for
example, through increases that may interfere with farm vehicles.

121

Hunnicutt

Admits to the possibility,
but is not aware of any study demonstrating that kind of conflict.

141

Chair Messerle

Asks if he feels the maps
shown earlier are accurate enough with the soil testing by the NRCS, and are
they site specific enough to go to boundary lines.

152

Hunnicutt

Responds.

174

Chair Messerle

States that when they were
mapping in Coos County it was done specifically with soil samples. This was
done with the idea that it was for farm management, and not used with zoning
purposes in the future. Sees a real value for planning purposes. Sees
tremendous value in these maps.

180

Hunnicutt

Comments on Chairs
statement.

187

Sen.Deckert

In the intent of SB 100,
are you, in your efforts going to include the authors of the bill, to get at
what the intent of the bill really was of that legislation?

198

Hunnicutt

Responds that the best way
to determine intent is to listen to all 27 tapes of SB 100.

219

Sen.Deckert

Asks if OIA is on record
for the expansion of the UGB onto prime farmland in the Portland Metro area,
and if they are in opposition to that expansion.

224

Hunnicutt

States that they haven’t
addressed the actual expansion of urban growth boundaries in the Portland
Metro area.

240

Charlie Swindells

Staff Attorney, 1000
Friends of Oregon. Discusses legal concept of Legislative Intent in the law
of preservation of agriculture in large blocks; preservation of all
agricultural land and likewise the Forestry Practices Act, and soil conservation.Submits written testimony. (EXHIBIT G).

Tape 18, B

Is the 1000 Friends view
that SB 100 and SB 101 done, in your organization’s view, what they were
intended to do?

061

Swindells

Responds that they graded
SB 100 on its effectiveness four years ago. Feels the potential of SB 101
will be more effective.

067

Sen.R. Beyer

Comments that he would
give the idea of SB 100 a –D. Refers to I-5 built down the Willamette Valley.
The most predominant, most beneficial high value farmland in the world is now
underneath pavement in may areas. Looking at the Willamette Valley points to
the need to do something different because our growth is being pushed onto
the most productive soils in the world and we are preserving the worst stuff.

088

Sen.Burdick

Asks that if the Notion of
Intent is clear in the words of the statute itself, then the court does not
go beyond that. States that she is concerned, that with 29 hours of tapes, if
there is a question about intent, isn’t the remedy through the courts and not
the legislature?.

097

Swindells

Agrees. States that it is
called Intrinsic Evidence of the Legislative Intent. Expands on that
statement.

110

Sen.Fisher

States that having sat
through HB 3661, and various other parts, it was certainly not put together
with Legislative Intent.

123

Harlan Levy

Staff Attorney for the Oregon
Association of Realtors. Defines secondary lands as lands outside of urban
growth boundaries that have been incorrectly zoned for resource uses.
Presents further testimony on this issue. Submits written testimony. (EXHIBIT I).

211

Sen.Deckert

Follow-up regarding the
nature of surveying other states. States that of all the questions asked by
numerous groups of policy makers outside Oregon is as Oregon is a model, how
did you revitalize your downtown, your metropolitan centers, and how did you
protect farm and forest land?The
most astonishing question I get when I go outside of Oregon is: how did
Oregon do it, and what happened in 1970s?

236

Levy

Agrees that Oregon is held
up as model and that there needs to be something about this situation.

252

Sen.Fisher

The simple answer is that
to get where we are, we’ve taken away the constitutional rights of everyone
who is a private property owner in the State of Oregon.

259

Chair Messerle

Asks what kind of pressure
is there from the high-density areas from air pollution, water quality, to
the habitant for some of our endangered species? Have you seen from other
states how they are dealing with some of these problems?

275

Levy

States that Oregon is a
very regulated state in terms of its land use. One of the most so in the
country. Continues his comments.

298

Don Schellenberg

Associate Director of
Governmental Affairs for the Oregon Farm Bureau Federation. States that
Secondary Lands mean different things to different people. Continues
testimony on land use policies.Submits written testimony.(EXHIBIT J).

468

Messerle

Comments that a great
point was raised on the base of agriculture resources that pulls the entire
infrastructure together. I am alarmed at the acreage being taken out of
farming right now for mitigation sites, or lots of it just simply being
bought by public agencies and bodies; and agriculture, as far as production
goes, ceases. States that he doesn’t know if this problem is universal, but
it’s becoming a huge issue in his district on the coast and in the Willamette
Valley. Has the Farm Bureaubeen
dealing with that issue?

492

Schellenberg

Responds that yes they
are, and expands on explanation.

520

Chair Messerle

Comments in some of the
cases where land is being bought for mitigation, it’s being bought for
multiples of what its worth as farmland. It needs to be looked at and we need
some advice and policy from some of the agencies and organizations.

Tape 19,B

070

Sen.R. Beyer

Inquires, in his opinion,
if the land use laws have worked as envisioned almost 30 years ago.

073

Schellenberg

Responds by rephrasing the
question to: “Have they protected the farmland in perpetuity?”No.

084

Sen.R. Beyer

States that this was not
the vision he had for our farmland. Notes that one of the things the Farm
Bureau supports in the report is “the principle of land use planning is for
the purpose of protecting the resource... “in a profitable manner”. Asks what
the Farm Bureau is going to do when there are farmers in his district going
broke trying to farm, but cannot do that now because land use values are so
high around them.It is known that
the canneries are closing, the seed industry is going broke, and almost every
agricultural commodity is down. The land values, which are the farmers highest
assets, are such that they cannot afford to sell them to another farmer,
because their land values are being driven up by the homes being built across
the street on which is just as productable farm land.What are these people supposed to do?

104

Schellenberg

Responds to the questions.

129

Chair Messerle

Welcomes John Branchfield
who is from the American Bankers Association, Director of the Center of
Agricultural and Rural Banking.

136

Jim Welsh

Representing the Oregon
Family Farms Association.Gives
testimony on representation of private property rights to protect lands
important to farmers, and supports SB 212 relating to Secondary Lands.
Submits written testimony. Submits written testimony. (EXHIBIT K).

297

Chair Messerle

Notes that if this concept
is going to move forward, he strongly urges people to form a coalition and
get back to the committee with data.Asks how many members in the group.

305

Welsh

Responds that there are
presently1200.

307

Chair Messerle

Comments that sometimes we
like to think in terms of commercial farms, and it’s interesting that there
are not a lot of commercial farms anymore that solely make their living off
the farm. Gives example of own family farm, and states that less of their
income comes from the cattle. Other income comes from contracted timber.
Appears to becoming a real norm within the state, even in the valley.

326

Sen.R. Beyer

Points out that currently,
the only Willamette Valley commodities that are profitable are not the ones
in large commercial operations, but the ones on small parcel type farming
operations. These are the only things the farmers are even supporting
themselves with.There is a need to
look to the smaller parcels, because that’s the only place where farmers are
making any money.

342

Sen. Burdick.

Asks if the group is a
non-profit or a political action committee?

348

Welsh

Responds that it is
privately incorporated.

351

Sen.Burdick

Contribution Expenditure
Report for the Oregon Family Farm Pack shows $197K in contributions received
and of those contributions, only $559 came out of people who listed their
occupation as farmer, rancher or logger. Are those figures correct?

372

Welsh

Responds that he cannot at
present, answer the question.

381

Sen.Burdick

Referring to the 2000 Mailing
Guide. The Association took positions on things you would expect. Wondering
what the connection is to the issues listed in the Guide and what do they
have to do with small family farming?

398

Welsh

Responds that he does not
recall, as he was not involved in putting together the Guide.

413

Chair Messerle

Suggests that the Senator
and Mr. Welsh continue this discussion at a later time.

414

Sen.Fisher

Comments that many people
have no idea what bothers farmers and how many people are involved in farms.
Wants to know why the federal government is paying thousands and thousands
for acres to be taken out of production over in the eastern part of the
country.

433

Sen.Shields

Asks if he and Farm Bureau
have been in contact with each other along the way.

442

Welsh

Responds: not at this
point

455

Sen.Shields

Asks if he has formulated
an opinion on the Family Farm Association’s proposals?

456

Schellenberg

Requests clarification.

462

Sen.Shields

Dealing with secondary
lands, SB 212, etc.

466

Schellenberg

States that they have not
yet seen anything in writing to know what their positions were.

477

Art Schlack

Association of Oregon
Counties. Refers to the question: Are there lands that are zoned exclusive
land or forest in the state of Oregon that have been mis-zoned? Response,
Yes. Are there existing processes or procedures to address some of these
issues? Yes, there are. Are they adequate? I’m not sure.

Tape 20,A

020

Schlack

Continues with testimony.

095

Chair Messerle

Asks a question relating
to standards. Much discussion on opening up for lotto sub divisions.States that he has always thought we
should put more emphasis on requirements, if you do want to build, such as
roadway, so you could get fire trucks in, water supplies, etc., that are required
for a home site. Does the county have any thoughts or position on that?

109

Schlack

Responds that the question
of adequacy of services is a local issue of which you’ll see different
standards from county-to-county at this point. But the standards dealing with
access, meeting sub-service sewage disposal requirements and the like are
issues that are commonly addressed when someone is looking at dividing land.